Using films in class to present complex issues in a masterful way or to simply spark discussion in a reserved classroom are nothing new. YouTube and the attendant expansion of availability of streaming video clips from well respected news outlets have certainly made it easier and less expensive. But barriers to incorporating multimedia in the class room persist. Finding well done educational videos can be exceedingly time consuming and many still carry high price tags. One 26 minute video recently requested by a faculty member cost over $1000.00!

The library is offering a trial to a service aimed at addressing the cost and convenience impediments to bringing high quality educational videos to the classroom: Films on Demand Business & Economics collection. The high quality videos in this collection cover a range of topics from technology to biography to case studies to globalization, entrepreneurship, advertising, diversity training, business communication and negotiation. The films are produced by well known British and US educational and news organizations such as The Open University, The BBC, Films for the Humanities & Sciences and Bill Moyers Journal. Finding relevant videos is as easy as browsing the subject lists or searching by keyword. Many of the films are brief enough and segmented to facilitate in class viewing. There are no restrictions on simultaneous views, eliminating bottlenecks to out of class assigned viewing.